Category Archives: Ministry of Transport

The Government Policy Statement (GPS) on Land Transport is the context in which all Government land transport policy is developed – and ever since the current National-led Government came to power, successive Government Policy Statements have been heavily focused on roading, despite the clear evidence that building more roads does not solve congestion.

Strikingly missing from these strategic priorities is the environmental performance of our land transport system. Perhaps that’s because it’s already bad and rapidly getting worse: whether in regard to the serious local health effects of particulate emissions from transport, the effect of motorway-building on urban environments, or the urgent need to rapidly reduce greenhouse gas emissions from transport.

The New Zealand Government has ratified the Paris Agreement, taking on a commitment for a substantial reduction in New Zealand’s greenhouse gas emissions. Land transport is responsible for around 20% of New Zealand’s greenhouse gas emissions, and the volume of transport emissions has been rising steadily. Land transport is second only to agriculture as a greenhouse gas emitting sector.

The Government is relying mainly on a move to electric vehicles to reduce transport emissions. However, the composition and replacement rate of the New Zealand vehicle fleet both mean that, even if such a change were to occur, it would not occur either fully or quickly enough to produce the level of emissions reduction required.

Therefore, one of the aims of the Government Policy Statement should be to drive a rapid reduction in greenhouse gas emissions from transport. This can be achieved by prioritising the use of public transport and of active modes and the provision of the necessary infrastructure, and by deemphasising the provision of infrastructure for private motor vehicles, which will in turn encourage more journeys by what is currently a highly polluting motor vehicle fleet.

Based on this draft Government Policy Statement, the ratification of the Paris Agreement is not being reflected in actual Government policy.

How to submit

Submissions on the draft Government Policy Statement close at 5pm on Friday 31 March 2017. Details of how to download the draft Strategy, and make submissions, can be found on the Government draft GPS page at

In a letter to the Save the Basin Campaign (in response to one we sent to John Key soon after the High Court decision was announced), Transport Minister Simon Bridges says some encouraging things:

The NZ Transport Agency advises me that … it intends to enter into an open and collaborative process with councils and the community to spark new conversations and ideas about the best way to deliver substantive solutions to the congestion at the Basin and other pinch points in the network.

I appreciate that you have had a strong interest in this issue over a period of time, and thank you for the time that you have already committed to developing and presenting alternative solutions for consideration.

Let’s hope that Minister Bridges’ views, as expressed in the letter above, result in the Regional Transport Committee, City and Regional Councillors, and NZTA officials demonstrating a new openness and willingness to genuinely and widely consult on the Basin, and on the best options for Wellington’s transport network.

In trying to justify the Government’s $12 billion “Roads of National Significance” motorway-building programme, which included a Basin Reserve flyover, the New Zealand Transport Agency makes great play of a projected increase in Vehicle Kilometres Travelled (VKT). The growth in VKT, they say, can only be dealt with by building more motorways.

It’s been known for a long time that the second part of this argument is false: there is plentiful evidence from all around the world, and from New Zealand, that building new roading capacity only induces more traffic, thus leading to bigger motorways, thus leading to more traffic…

Following each General Election, Government departments prepare a Briefing for the Incoming Minister (BIM). Patrick Morgan of Cycle Aware Wellington has drawn my attention to the following passage from the Ministry of Transport’s BIM – emphasis is mine:

“The average distance travelled per-person in light passenger vehicles has fallen by around 8 percent, from a peak of about 7,600km in 2004, to around 7,000km in 2013. The total distance travelled over the same period has increased marginally (from 39.3 billion kilometres in 2004 to 40.4 billion kilometres in 2013) as a result of population growth. This trend is not unique to New Zealand – it has been observed in a number of developed countries.

There is some debate as to whether this trend is the result of economic factors or a more structural shift in attitudes towards personal transportation. The fact that this trend emerged before the onset of the global financial crisis gives cause to believe that social, behavioural and lifestyle factors (such as the proliferation of smart phones, social media, online shopping and video conferencing) may also be having an influence. A related trend is a reduction in the number of driver licences being issued. In particular, fewer young people are choosing to drive. This suggests that in some groups, the perceived merit of car ownership and use may be declining.”

Save the Basin has already drawn attention in the media to New Zealand research showing that young people in urban centres are turning away from driving private cars. It’s great to see that the Ministry of Transport has picked up on this. The question now is: are the Government and NZTA willing and able to realise that the assumptions on which their transport thinking is based no longer apply?

Photo by Patrick Morgan

Presentation draws together the many health benefits of reorienting transport planning

OraTaiao, the New Zealand Climate & Health Council, is playing an increasing role in drawing attention to the negative health implications of the Government’s obsession with funding motorways while depriving sustainable transport and active modes of financial support. Last week, Russell Tregonning of OraTaiao delivered an excellent presentation entitled Transport, Climate and Health: Wellington at the cross-roads that draws together:

the urgent need to reorient transport planning and spending to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from transport

the other public health and economic benefits that would flow from doing so – such as reductions in crashes, air pollution, and obesity and related ailments

the changing patterns of transport behaviour that are helping to change transport planners’ and Government’s transport thinking worldwide